Analysts: Google investors “freaking out for nothing” — As far as second quarters go, Google had a decent one. But that minor detail got lost in the big tech news Wednesday as jumpy investors punished Google in after-hour trading by as much as 11% for missing Wall Street estimates.

Why Silicon Valley Should Be Worried — We have short memories in Silicon Valley, which is both a blessing and a curse. We forget the bad times as quickly as we forget the good times. — At the turn of the century, everything went to hell with the dot-com bust.

Google Anti-Gravity Ray is Fading — When a company has a monopoly on an extremely valuable franchise that is growing rocket fast, all sorts of unreasonable things happen. That company levitates. Almost no amount of spending can bring it down to Earth. Until, that is, the growth begins to slow.

On-Demand Computing: A Brutal Slog — The tough reality of the on-demand game is taking its toll on software companies hoping to make a mint distributing their wares via the Web — The Internet revolutionized the distribution of software—perhaps a bit too much.

Wikipedia Tries Approval System to Reduce Vandalism on Pages — Wikipedia is considering a basic change to its editing philosophy to cut down on vandalism. In the process, the online encyclopedia anyone can edit would add a layer of hierarchy and eliminate some of the spontaneity that has made the site …

Venture Capital Loves Virtual — An army of startups developing tools to enhance our virtual lives attracted $345 million in venture investment in the first half of the year — Startups selling virtual goods and offering virtual experiences are raking in the venture capital these days.

New AMD chief knows the chips are down — Incoming AMD CEO Dirk Meyer is known as a top-notch chip designer. Image: AMD — AMD stock is hitting lows it hasn't seen in more than a decade. — Hector Ruiz is out as CEO of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Dirk Meyer is in.